A lot of learning, said Tom Reilly, vice president of CompTIA Learning, hasn’t changed since the days of Socrates: I am a learned person and I present you information, and at the end I will test your knowledge. In a presentation about the science of learning — and how it’s possible to enhance the way the brain learns and retains information — Reilly and Kirk Smallwood, CompTIA’s senior director for U.S. academic sales, demonstrated CertMaster, a new training tool that flips the old method of learning on its head.
CertMaster incorporates a decade of brain science to uncover what stimulates the brain to learn and retain information, said Smallwood. The program uses priming, spacing, analytics and engagement tools to help students learn.
“The brain science matters because your core mission is to help students succeed: in the class, on the exam and on the job,” Reilly said. “I think the riddle here is if you could find a 50 to 75 percent reduction in study time and 80 percent retention after 12 months, would that be meaningful?”
CertMaster Tools: Priming, Spacing, Real-Time Analysis
When CertMaster presents a question, often with a related image, it includes multiple choice answers. Choose one answer and mark it “I Am Sure” or fill in the blanks with two answers you think might be right and say, “I Am Partially Sure.” CertMaster responds by saying “You’re Right” or “One is Right” and gives you links to additional learning options. Then it takes you to the next question.
When you twice answer a question correctly and confidently, that information is more likely to be banked in your long-term memory. This is called the “testing effect,” which places recollection at the center of the learning program, and plays an important role in CertMaster, Reilly said.
“What we’re doing with this platform is asking questions in a certain repetition and creating a pathway for learning and remembering,” Reilly said.
At the base level of CertMaster is priming, which gives learners a preview of the content they’re about to learn. “We start by asking questions instead of presenting material,” Reilly said, explaining how priming creates a construct of the lesson. “CertMaster gives people that up-front clue: These are the things you’re going to need later when we get into the content.”
Priming prevents novices from becoming overwhelmed and creates a framework for learning.
“The other piece we found was spacing, and looking at the science behind that. The brain has to undergo synaptic consolidation process before memories can be retained,” he said. A “knowledge flood” can be too much information to take in at one time. Spacing, as it’s used in CertMaster, means lessons are just six to eight questions at a time, plus a review. “They get a chance for their brains to rest and gives memory that long-term time to form,” Reilly said.
CertMaster also uses learning algorithms to analyze user data in real time. If a student is flying through the lesson, it pivots to offer more challenging questions. When the student struggles, CertMaster slows down to offer remediation. That data is also shared with the instructor, who can track class and individual student progress.
“Each student is going to have a different experience in the platform,” Reilly said. “The teacher can look at that data and see how the aggregate classroom is doing, right down to individual learners.”
The Testing Effect
Taking cues from the video game industry, CertMaster is also designed to be engaging. “I have a 13-year-old son, and if I said to him, ‘I got you the new Call of Duty Black Ops, but before you start playing we’re going to have an hour lecture on all the players in the game,’ he’s probably going to say, ‘I don’t want to play that game, Dad,’” Reilly said. “What we found a lot in looking at learning is that engagement is the key to getting learners to connect with the course.”
Key motivational triggers include risk, achievement and curiosity. “The video game industry understands that very well,” he said. Those motivators create a dopamine effect, too, so more playing means a positive feedback loop. “With CertMaster, you’re given results, given encouragement, given a harder question if you’re doing too well and an easier question if you aren’t.”
“The important thing with CertMaster is that it’s not a video game — there are no guns,” he said to a big laugh, “but there are a lot of those same concepts from the gaming industry.”
CompTIA CertMaster is available for CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+, CompTIA Secuirty+ and CompTIA Strata IT Fundamentals. Learn more about how CertMaster can be a powerful certification preparation tool, and sign up for a free trial of the new online study tool.
Michelle Peterson is CompTIA’s communications specialist.
